Secondary syphilis presenting with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION)

• Published in: Oxford medical case reports Vol. 2024; no. 3; p. omae012
• Main Authors: AlKhayal, Fares A, Albusair, Moath K
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: 01.03.2024
• ISSN: 2053-8855; 2053-8855
• DOI: 10.1093/omcr/omae012

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum. Syphilis is a significant public health issue, notably in (HIV) positive patients. Due to the absence of pathognomonic signs in secondary syphilis and its ability to present and mimic a wide variety of clinical findings, it gained the name "the Great imitator '(mimicker).' Herein, we describe a case of a 51-year-old man who presented with acute painless loss of vision of the right eye preceded by a few erythematous plaques with thick scales over bilateral legs and multiple discrete and confluent scaly papules over the palms and soles. During the hospital stay, a diagnosis of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) as a manifestation of neurosyphilis is made. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of NAION as the presenting symptom of neurosyphilis in secondary syphilis in an immunocompetent patient.